


The Unmaking of a Hero

by PunsandPoses



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: DON'T READ UNLESS YOU WANT TO SLOWLY DIE FROM SADNESS, Death galore, GAME OVER HERE, Gabriel is Hawk Moth, Gen, Heavy Angst, I'm going to sob now, akuma!marinette, inspired by creepypasta, just an fyi, slenderman akuma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-18
Updated: 2016-11-30
Packaged: 2018-08-31 11:31:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,845
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8576833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PunsandPoses/pseuds/PunsandPoses
Summary: After Marinette is akumatized, terrible things happen. And only one cat can save her, but can he do it? Apocalypse AU, inspired by Slender Man.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Little context here, I got this idea from a story I read, where the friend goes bad and she kills relentlessly. My story's less kill-filled, but still steeped with angst. Feel free to comment or be a critic to my work, I want to see what I can do better.  
> -Puns

Marinette was normally cheerful, but she honestly could get pretty bloodthirsty. At least, until she was akumatized. Then she was an absolute monster.

Chloe had been a bitch as usual, but she crossed the line one day.

"MARINETTE DUPAIN-CHENG!" The screech echoed across the hallway.

The girl mentioned groaned, and turned toward the furious blond.

"YOU RUINED MY PROJECT! YOU DID!"

"No, I didn't Chloe."

"Yes you did. I bet you want everything I want! You even want my Adrikins, don't you?"

Marinette turned bright red.

"Ha! You do! You think he could actually like YOU? The lowly daughter of a baker? Well guess what? You'll never win his affections! Everyone knows you like him, it's a miracle that he hasn't rejected you yet."

Marinette tried so desperately to block those words out, but it was no use. She had thought those words herself. How could Adrien Agreste ever like her. She ran away, those spiteful words piercing the void. "YOU'RE WORTHLESS, YOU KNOW THAT?!"

A black butterfly flapped toward her, zooming in the bracelet she had worn on her wrist that day. 

Tikki had enough sense to zoom away with the earrings before Marinette was consumed. 

XXXXX

Alya had worried endlessly about Marinette. She had been gone for three hours, and she had never reappeared. Chloe was unreasonably smug, and Alya suspected she had something to do with Marinette's disappearance.

A scream shattered the air. 

A large black creature had appeared. Tall and thin, it smiled, revealing teeth like sabers. Tendrils of smoke echoed off its body, its eyes pools of black tar lit by only a green iris and pupil. 

It's voice was distorted and scratchy, as though through a static filled radio. "Chloe Bourgeois. My long hated enemy. I'm worthless, am I? I am the strongest akuma created. I can suck the very life out of you, bottle your soul, encase you in your worst nightmare, torture you 'til you beg for the sweet release of death. You, Chloe, have never shown remorse. You are the cause of many akumas, and while Hawk Moth applauds your impressive ability to make champions for him, you have NEVER SHOWN A SINGLE SHRED OF KINDNESS FOR A HUMAN BEING."

It slammed its clawed hands into the ground, and streams of darkness shot towards Chloe. The terrified blond was whipped up in a hurricane, and Alya watched in horror as white-gold whispy stuff came from Chloe's mouth. She collapsed, death white, and the akuma captured the whisps in a bottle. It turned to the frightened class, smiling pleasantly.

"No need to worry, I just captured her life force and soul."

Alya, who had been recording and sending the video on the Lady-Blog, whispered, "You KILLED her?"

The akuma turned to her, a nearly sympathetic look on it's blank face. "Chloe Bourgeois deserved to die. Oh, my, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Nightmare, extrordinaire. Strongest akuma ever created. Chloe taunted me and tortured me for weeks, with her 'Adrikins'."

"MARINETTE?!" Alya shrieked. "IT'S YOU?!"

"I'm not Marinette, I'm NIGHTMARE!" The akuma snarled. "If you weren't my greatest friend, I would have taken your life force. Maybe I'll decide to spare you. You'll watch in horror as the world burns for its sins."

Nino pushed his way forward. "You're not Nightmare, Marinette. You're a Dupain-Cheng. This isn't you!"

"Oh, really?" Tendrils of dark shot towards Ivan. "Well, then, I guess I'll have to prove to you that I am." Ivan was swept up, and his life force was taken. "Tsk, tsk, Alya. I really thought you were smarter than that. Recording me? Two dead, some left to go! Let's see how your bloggers feel when you-" SNAP. "stop recording." She tossed the two pieces of the phone back to Alya. 

Nightmare left, and the whole class was left wondering. Who would be next? 

XXXXX

Elsewhere,Adrien was honestly having a good day. That is, until the akuma appeared. It was tall and gaunt, and seemed to be able to kill just by "taking the life force and the soul". There had also been videos of it transforming everyday objects into magical weapons or monsters and setting them on innocent people. A speech recorded by a news reporter had been broadcasted worldwide.

"I AM HERE TO MAKE THE WORLD BURN. I HAVE KILLED THE MAYOR'S DAUGHTER AND YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS. BRING ME CHAT NOIR AND HIS MIRACULOUS AND I MIGHT LESSEN THE KILLING. OTHERWISE," she said, snapping the reporter's neck, "I WILL MAKE YOUR NIGHTMARES COME TO LIFE! I WILL KILL OR TORTURE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU!"

Adrien was near this speech when it happened, but since the Gorilla, as he called his bodyguard, had been killed by a knife, Adrien was pretty much on his own. He transformed, looking regretfully at the bloodstained body before leaping away. 

Ladybug, he had noted, had yet to come and help defeat the akuma, who was reportedly "the strongest ever created". In fact, the last time he had seen her, she was a little bit off. 

He found Nightmare terrorizing a couple, whom seemed to be fighting with.....ghosts of each other. The ghost of the man taunted the woman about her love, as did the ghost of the woman. 

Nightmare turned to him, eyes pools of darkness. "Chat Noir. Hawk Moth says you are the bane of his very existence. Personally, I see no hero within you, just a cold black heart of stone. You will never be a hero, and you never were. All those times they interviewed you and Ladybug, they asked nearly all the questions to your partner-"

"SHUT UP!" Chat screamed. All those doubts pouring out of Nightmare's mouth.....It was like she could channel his inner fears, say them out loud and twist them for the world to see. It was one of her powers, he realized, to twist your innermost and darkest fears. All he had to do was conquer them.

"I am a hero." he said, praying it would work. It seemed to, Nightmare backed off. That is, until she lunged.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter straight from hell for me. Also, slight Doctor Who reference. (The Garleks were killed in the Thyme War.)  
> -Puns

Marinette was falling. Falling, falling, falling, falling, whispers of the ages strumming through her veins. The great, mighty, ancient force thrummed around her. She was floating through space. It reminded her slightly of the Doctor Who intro, all swirling purple/orange storm clouds, minus the Time War, and, you know, the TARDIS. 

Whispers slid in her ears. "Don't listen to Chat Noir." "He's trying to confuse you." It was Hawk Moth, and apparently he was getting antsy. She couldn't see Hawk Moth or Chat, but she saw the death and destruction her akuma was causing. 

Adrien's bodyguard was lying in a pool of blood. Chloe, even Chloe had been hit. She had turned white, a corpse. Ivan had been ripped away as well. 

If she wanted to stop, she couldn't.

XXXXX

Fighting Nightmare, was, quite literally, a Nightmare. 

Chat had been shouting out jokes, most of which came from Tumblr. He loved the site, but the ships about him and Marinette had gotten to be a bit much. "Marichat" had so much sin, and "Ladrien" had him melting in his seat. "Ladynoir" was ridiculous, though. "Adrienette" was really fluffy. Like, too fluffy.

"Can't tell me I suck, I'm a purr-fect purr-son."

"You will pay, Chat Noir. Or, should I say, mon minou?" Nightmare smirked, and slammed her hands down. Tendrils of darkness spread towards Chat, who was too stunned to move. Plagg screamed in his head. "MOVE IT, YOU IDIOT! I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"

Chat chuckled and jumped out of the way. "I thought you were immortal." 

Plagg got really angry at that. "I AM, BUT YOU AREN'T, YOU ASS."

Nightmare, tired of the Chat and mouse game, ran away, leaving destruction in her wake.

XXXXX

Adrien was bamboozled. Ladybug must have been akumatized. No one else called him "mon minou". No one.

He ran frantic fingers through his hair and watched the news. Only a few minutes passed before Nightmare slashed the reporters' throat, and the cameramen were attacked, presumably. 

Nightmare was really getting on his fragile nerves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, it's all I could get out. Hope you like it.  
> -Puns


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which stuff happens and there's a LOT of stuff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, something to say here. I accept the fact that my plot is going all YOLO and insane, maning that I basically have no plot. So bear with me here.   
> -Puns

Paris was terrified. Ladybug had never appeared, and quote unquote "nightmares" were popping up.

Chat was frankly tired. Since he suspected that Ladybug was either the akuma or had been captured in civilian/superhero form. He didn't expect her to show.

Things were being destroyed. The death toll mounted. Then Chat himself had nearly been killed. 

It was night. Being black, Nightmare was extremely hard to see without night vision or the like. Thankfully (and life-saving-ly), Chat had it. However, it was still pretty hard to spot her. She melted into shadows. 

Next thing he knew, claws were at his neck and a voice was hissing in his ear. "This is how you feel, isn't it? Helpless." Nightmare snarled. Claws were slashed. Blood splattered across the street and his suit. 

Three angry lines made their way across his face and neck. His cheeks were torn, aorta narrowly missed. Plagg had nearly gone mad. "The hell, kid! Of all the stupid things to do, you could have been killed!"

"It's not like I was intent upon being killed, you assbutt." Adrien snarked back.

Plagg flew back and studied him. "You just quoted Castiel."

Adrien's hands flew to his mouth. "No. Nope. I didn't. I don't watch it."

"Tumblr, kid. Them gifs are practically all Supernatural. Yes, I saw you searching 'LadyNoir'."

"That's not as bad as your searching of 'Marichat'."

"I don't read smut. Boi, you used to be such a fluffy thing, now you're all sin and angst. Stop reading those fanfictions. Incognito mode won't get you anywhere."

"Whatever."

Plagg scoffed, then watched over Adrien's shoulder impatiently at the news. Reporters had settled for staying at the studio, considering the deaths of 5 reporters at the hands of the akuma. 

"Four-hundred seventy-five are dead at the hands of the recent akuma, Nightmare. Authorities are trying to contain the problem, but they are having troubles on account of the larger number of injured, about one-thousand twenty-two. According to statistics," the reporter said, " an average of 5 in ten are at risk of being attacked. It is advisable to stay indoors and not go out on the streets unless absolutely necessary, as ten are missing: Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Andre Bourgeois.."

The reporter's voice faded out as static filled Adrien's head. In total, 1507 people were dead, injured, or missing. Hurt because he couldn't do his job and get the akuma under control. His musings were interrupted by a small red creature, holding a pair of earrings. It looked tired and world weary. 

"Plagg....please.....akuma.....chosen......Fu....dead........Hawk.....Moth......gotta....captured." It slurred each word, looking like it hadn't been fed in the two weeks Nightmare had been around. It collapsed, Plagg catching it. "Tikki, you OK? I haven't seen you this starved and lost in ages. What's the matter?"

"Chosen.....is.....akuma.....killed....Guardian......Marinette......akuma." "Tikki" said. "Chloe.....she's.....at....old....warehouse......"

"OK, Tikki," Plagg said, "keep going."

Tikki took a deep breath. "She.....found.....Hawk......Moth.....he's......going.....to....be....dead."

"WHAT?" Adrien shouted. Never had an akuma sought out Hawk Moth, least of all planned to kill him. 

This just got a little more terrifying.

XXXXX

Nightmare smirked. She had found Hawk Moth. Relentless searching had yielded her this, a dead Guardian and a found super villain. She was living her own agenda, not anyone else's.

The nine she captured were all in various states of terror. One woman was sobbing, a man looked like he was praying, and another man was pounding on the wall. "LET ME OUT. I AM THE MAYOR OF PARIS, AND I DEMAND TO BE FREE, YOU MURDERER." His extremely short gray hair was plastered to his head with sweat. Andre Bourgeois.

Nightmare was proud of this capture. It had been at the snotty girl's funeral, and she had melted from the shadows and grabbed the mourning man.

Now, in chains, thin, with ripped clothing, and an expression of haughtiness, Andre was the image of a proud man brought low. 

She strode, or rather, floated to him. She tilted his head up with a claw, forcing him to look at her. "Andre Bourgeois. Once the proud, corrupted mayor of this city. Ever consider that you might deserve this? Take him away."

Two objects stirred suddenly to life as nightmarish things, a chair and a stand, complete with a globe. They stumbled to Nightmare, and she handed them a knife. "You know what to do." A slash at the chains, and a little effort later, the former mayor was dragged to a separate room. Moments later, screams of agony echoed through the hallway. She smiled. Justice was falling upon the city.

XXXXX

It was three days later. Andre Bourgeois was dead after 36 hours of torture, as a warning to her other prisoners. His mangled body was dumped in the street by a car she corrupted. A warning had issued from the car's mouth before it had turned to dust.

"Your mayor was killed rightfully. Your city is a doomed one. Justice shall fall upon Paris, and you will know why. Consider yourselves warned."

Now, Nightmare had planned an attack on Hawk Moth. She amassed an army worth of Napoleon and Rome. Thousands upon thousands of items were possessed, including needles, cars, chairs, and balls. 

She had reached his established hideout, a mansion. To be specific, Gabriel Agreste's mansion. Tall, imposing windows appeared. A stone and iron gate barred the entrance. The army surged forth, a mass of malicious objects. Soon, the gate fell. 

Nightmare flew around to the back of the mansion, and shattered the window to the secret room. Hawk Moth stood there, a frozen statue against the darkness of the room. Slowly, he thawed and chuckled. 

"I was expecting you, Nightmare."

With a swipe of his cane, Hawk Moth began the battle. 

XXXXX

"WHAT THE FLYING HELL! YOU EXPECT ME TO JUST FREAKING STAND HERE WHEN I CAN HEAR A BATTLE RAGING ABOVE?" Adrien screamed. Stuck in his mansion with Nightmare's minions swarmed about, Adrien had just about had enough.

"Trust me, it's the best plan." Plagg said. "Nightmare expects you to go help, transformed or not. She knows your father and has plans."

"Fuck that, that's my father up there. CLAWS OUT." Plagg flew into the ring, looking defeated. 

Chat Noir clawed his way to the battle, just to hear a gunshot.

Hawk Moth lay on the ground, grievously injured. 

Blood streamed freely from his chest, where a bullet wound lay. Nightmare snatched his Miraculous, and then it was over. Gabriel Agreste lay dying on the floor. He looked at Chat Noir, a mix of hatred and relief on his face. "Defeat her, Chat Noir. You are the only one who can. She is my......she is my strongest creation."

Nightmare shattered another window and flew off, her army as well. 

Chat watched the dying man. Slowly, he exhaled, with what was his last breath. "I'm sorry, Adrien....."

A bullet seemed to pierce Chat's heart as Gabriel breathed his last. 

Super villains weren't always villains, were they?

XXXXX

Adrien sobbed quietly, just like his father had told him. "Chin up, Agreste men don't cry, Adrien. You have a duty and reputation to uphold."

Tikki and Plagg watched helplessly. They had both suspected, but neither actively pursued the subject of Gabriel Agreste actually being the infamous Hawk Moth, terror of Paris. 

'You know," Plagg started. 

'Know what? That my father created villains just so he could get my and Ladybug's Miraculous?" Adrien snapped. "That he nearly killed people on a daily basis? That he pined so much for Mom he did this? He has the peacock kwami, I saw it in the safe, and you discussed it, the two of you. On what he could have with that. He had that book, I realize what now, of all those Miraculous."

"Adrien, Plagg was just trying to help. Even if it's sarcastic and a little skeptical," Tikki said, "but you must get over the anger. You kept secrets too. Your Miraculous itself is one of them. Both of you skirted around one another, and several times I felt your anguish, yearning to spill free."

"Hell yeah, we 'skirted' around each other. That time he hugged me, it felt so cold, like an actress hugging her co-star. I worked so hard for a year to actually get into school. Plagg wasn't there when I was working. I was forced to keep friends at an arm's length, even the ones who cared the most. I was free as Chat because no one knew who I was. They just knew the mask and the suit, not the body and face behind it. I could tell stupid jokes and pick-up lines. I could flirt, I could just let it all free."

"You never fought back," Plagg said. "That was your problem. I know you hate modelling, but you never said a word. You just went along with your father's cold wishes."

"So what if I did? Now he's dead, a cold figure lying in a room, a bullet in his chest. You know, he never actually tried to get to know ME. I WAS JUST A FREAKING TOOL FOR HIM! THAT'S ALL I WAS! JUST A- JUST A- TOOL." He picked up a mirror and threw it at the windows, whose bars looked like confinement.

It shattered. The sound gave Adrien a deep sense of satisfaction. He picked up a basketball and hurled it. It bounced off the window, not making a dent. That angered him. He walked up and pounded at the window until it, too, shattered like its fellow. Glass rained down at his feet. He sank into the pool of shards, feeling blood run down his arms and glass in his knees. Pain shot up his body, white-hot and angry. 

He couldn't find it within himself to care as he sobbed and wanted the world to end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why do I make shameless references? I need to be PUN-ished. ;) I have a few things to say. First of all, I'm slightly sorry for killing Gabe. (Let's be honest here, he deserved it. Ish.) Second, please review my writing, I would totally appreciate that, as I want to make my writing better, and comment below. Third, I want to thank each and every one of you who gave me kudos, bookmarked, or commented on my works. You guys are purr-fect. Finally, you are all going to despise me for what happens next chapter. Have fun!  
> -Puns


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the original thing, it was just going to be five chapters, but it got away from me. Oh, well. Chapter Six is the epilogue.   
> -Puns

The air was chill, and the rain seemed to go on and on.

 

It was grey, very grey. 

 

The pastor droned on, his voice filled with the uncaring and indifference of someone who was an outsider, who had never truly known the person, and would gladly leave if given the chance. 

 

“Gabriel was a great man…”

 

Adrien struggled with the intense anger that pierced him. His father wasn’t great in the slightest. 

 

In the two weeks that had passed since Gabriel’s death, Adrien had sobbed on and on, his eyes red. He would wake up, if he ever slept, cried, and poked at the meals provided. 

 

“And now, Madmoiselle Nathalie, who has agreed to speak today,” the pastor said.

 

Nathalie, her dark hair pulled back, started. “Though it is not within me to speak ill of my employer, I can say he was very cold.”

 

Plagg rustled in Adrien’s jacket. “The last thing the boy needs,” Plagg thought, “is someone to say bad stuff about his dad.”

 

Adrien thought otherwise. “Finally,” he thought, “someone who will say the truth about Father.”

 

The cold man who had been such a player in Adrien Agreste’s life. Gabriel Agreste. Who was dead. Very dead. Gone, forever. 

 

The fact hit him like a freight train. Father was dead, for god’s sake. Gone, dead, deceased, no longer living, to say it in a few ways. 

 

Just like the main part of Adrien.

 

XXXXX

 

“I’m writing something.” he said to Plagg and Tikki a week later.

 

“OK,” Tikki said, “but what are you going to write?”

 

“An account, of how my father was. I’m going to document the days and nights, tell I’m Chat Noir, everything. In my journal.” He waved a blue book, filled with empty lined pages.

 

He snatched a pen, and began to write.

 

"Dear Journal, Monday 

 

I’m Adrien Agreste, and my alter ego is Chat Noir. My father was Gabriel Agreste. My best friend is a boy named Nino Lahiffe. He likes a girl named Alya Cesaire. For a couple months now, an akuma named Nightmare has been terroizing Paris. An akuma is a creature made by black butterflies. 

 

The first akuma was Stoneheart, and he was made from stone. There are real people inside them, though. For example, Stoneheart was really a boy named Ivan. He’s dead now, killed by Nightmare, the latest akuma. 

 

I honestly don’t know what to do. Everyone seems to be looking up to me, as Chat Noir. Chat Noir is my superhero persona. It’s enabled by my kwami, Plagg. 

 

I think Nightmare is Ladybug or Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Both are missing. Nightmare is pretty awful, she’s killed more than a thousand. She can take your life force and make monsters out of objects. 

 

My father was the supervillian who created her. He was Hawk Moth, and he made all the akumas. He was killed by Nightmare two weeks ago. I watched him die of a gunshot.

 

To be honest, this really isn’t fair. To me, or anyone else. 

 

But we all have to deal. Every single person in France is terrified, except for Nightmare. And, chillingly, we haven’t heard a single word from her in a week. It’s pretty bad. 

 

And, being Paris’ lone superhero, her demise rests on my shoulders. 

 

Sincerely,  
Adrien"

 

He marked the page and shut the book. He felt ten pounds lighter, but the weight of the world still seemed to rest on his shoulders. 

 

A scream marked the air, and he leaped into action. Tikki watched, worried. She wanted to suggest that he take her Miraculous as well, but resisted. 

 

Chat Noir clawed his way to the roof of his mansion, and watched in shock as Nightmare killed three people in record time. 

 

Nino, Alya, and Sabine Dupain-Cheng. They were now dead. Nightmare glanced up, and smirked at Chat Noir. 

 

“Hello, Chat. How nice to see you! I’ve killed these three. In my other self, they were my friends and one was my parent. Oh, well. Beware, Chat, I’m always watching. Poor Tom, good thing Sabine was quick to follow. My parents are dead, and so are two of my closest friends. Watch out…” She melted into the shadows. 

 

Adrien raced back home. Quickly, he came to the journal again. He had vowed to write everything that happened. And he was going to do it.

 

"Continued

 

Dear Journal,

 

My best friend is dead. Nino. As well as Alya Cesaire and Sabine and Tom Dupain-Cheng. I think Nightmare is Marinette, she said that she killed Sabine, her parent. 

 

I don’t know what to do. She just killed them. Nino has been my best friend for two years. He’s- He’d always be there for me. 

 

Alya was Marinette’s best friend. She had red-ended brown hair. Both her and Nino wore glasses. 

 

Everyone is wanting answers, but I have none to give them. It’s the absolute worst.

 

Sincerely,  
Adrien."

 

XXXXX

 

Another week had passed. Nightmare had not showed hide nor hair, almost disappearing.

 

Adrien documented every day.

 

Tikki watched him. He had an unhealthy obsession with this. It was consuming it. “Plagg,” she whispered one night, “don’t you see that this is hurting him?”

 

Plagg had leveled a gaze so sharp and piercing that Tikki felt her face heat up. “No, it’s not. The boy needs an outlet, and this is his way of getting one. It’s much better for him to write his experiences than to keep it all in. Besides, Adrien might die soon-”

 

“PLAGG!”

 

“-but then people would know his experiences, and they could learn from them easily.”

 

“I know he might die, but I don’t want to think about it. I don’t think you want to either.”

 

“Yeah, Tikki, I don’t. But I’ve lost so many Chosens that it’s numbed me. I can accept death more than YOU.”

 

“I know, Plagg. I know.”

 

XXXXX

 

It was the first battle in three weeks. Nightmare against Chat. 

 

Chat raced around her, eyes dim. No puns or stupid jokes were thrown. He was somber.

 

With a forceful blow, Chat was on his knees. 

 

Nightmare glared at him. “I want to kill you, Chat Noir. Maybe I will, maybe I won’t.”

 

“You’re better than this, Marinette.”

 

“Marinette!” she shrieked. “Marinette, who was clumsy! Who was tortured by Chloe, who was always late! Who fumbled and bumbled over her words sometimes! I’m not Marinette! I’m NIGHTMARE!”

 

“Yes, and that’s what made her perfect. She didn’t kill, she showed compassion to those who deserved it.”

 

“I killed your friends, my parents, nearly everyone who’s anyone is now dead. Including Nathalie, that disgusting former employee of Gabriel Agreste’s.”

 

Chat felt like a punch had hit his stomach. 

 

He needed to get away, to write his experiences.

 

“Needing this?” Nightmare waved a familiar blue book. “I haven’t looked at it yet, but I think you really know it.”

 

“You bitch.” Chat spat. “Every single thing you’ve done, it hasn’t been enough to really break someone. It’s pathetic, just like you!”

 

“Me? Pathetic?” She advanced on Adrien. She shoved the book and a pen in his hands. “Write.”

 

He scribbled what was sure to be his last entry in his journal. 

 

"In the end," he wrote, "I wasn’t enough to stop her."

 

When he was done, she snatched the book away. 

 

A whirl of claws echoed across his cheek. Blood spurted. 

 

“Now, cold torture will do.”

 

She pummeled him within an inch of his life, ‘til he could barely spare a breath or take one in. 

 

She left him, gasping, bloodied, and bruised, in an alley. 

 

She strode away, intent upon reading the journal. 

 

The transformation washed away, leaving Adrien with Plagg. 

 

“Hey, Plagg.” Adrien whispered. 

 

“I’m so sorry, kid. I couldn’t do much.” Plagg said, tears brimming up in his eyes.

 

“I know.”

 

Tikki came, and she comforted Plagg.

 

A great sigh left Adrien’s lips. “I’m sorry I couldn’t do more. I should have. I could have.”

 

“We all think we can do things we can’t, Adrien.”

 

“I know. And that’s what makes life so great.”

 

The final breath left Adrien’s body, joining the other gases in the atmosphere. 

 

Green eyes turned dim, and Plagg slipped the ring off his finger with ease. 

 

Tikki started to sing. 

 

“Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away...”

 

“What are you doing?” Plagg asked. 

 

“I’m singing him to eternal sleep.”

 

Together, they sang the song, wishing that they could just have one more minute with Adrien. The boy who gave everything to save one tiny world.


	5. End Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette is purified, regret, yadda yadda yadda. Basic epilogue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nevermind, no sixth chapter epilogue. But I hope you enjoy. Major Time Jump Alerts. (Only 20 years and a few weeks, don't flip out, she ain't old or some shit.) I kinda always wanted to feature Felix in this (I've never done it before), but I thought he would be good as just an associate of Marinette's, not a boyfriend or something. (I HAD TO ADD SEXUAL TENSION, OKAY? THEY ARE THIRTY-FIVE AND ARGUE CONSTANTLY, IT IS THERE.) Also, am I the only one who constantly spells "Dupain" like "Duapin"?  
> -Puns

Nightmare rounded to corner to her hideout. The stench of blood, tangy and metallic, greeted her nose when she shoved open the door. Mindlessly, she took note of the ill health of her last living captive, a blond woman who had long given up hope of leaving the warehouse. 

Nightmare brushed by her, barely sparing a glance. She greedily flipped to the entries of the journal, about half of the book filled with stories and entries, some long, some short, all separated by a page. 

She came to the last entry, the one which she forced him to write. 

"Dear Journal,  
This is fated to be my last entry, I believe it to be. I think that she'll read this, I hope it will be enough that she realizes her mistakes. But that is for another day. In the end, I was not enough to stop her. I think no one would be. Even my father.  
Signed,  
Adrien"

She covered her mouth with a laugh. Realize her mistakes? What mistakes? There were none to be had. 

XXXXX

Inside, Marinette was screaming. "LET ME GO! JUST LET ME GO! I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS ANYMORE!"

The akuma whispered, "But Chloe, she ruined your crush, she called you worthless."

"I ALREADY KILLED HER."

"They deserve it, they were the ones who stood by. Remember Theo? He said that it wasn't like you to do this. Marinette, this is YOU. And only you. No one can force this on you. It was all you."

Marinette somehow found it within her to stay calm against the power of the akuma. "No. It wasn't me. It was all you. You and Hawk Moth, I realize now. ANd you'll never have full control of me."

Carefully, she started to do something she had always been meant to do: forgive. She forgave Chloe, she forgave Andre Bourgeois, she forgave everyone who had ever wronged her. She forgave it all. And most of all, she forgave herself. She realized she had been controlled, and that it would be hard to gain trust, but at least she had forgiven herself. And that was what mattered most. 

XXXX Twenty Years Later XXXXX

Thirty-five-year-old Marinette scrambled to complete the drawing. Her raven hair, now long and kept in a ponytail, swung wildly. Tikki and Plagg, staying in her jacket, giggled as they were sloshed about. 

"No, no, no! The skirt's too rushed. Shit, shit shit!"

"LANGUAGE!" Brianna screamed from the opposite room. Her intern had a terrible habit of listening in. 

"SHUT THE HELL UP, BREE, IT AIN'T CHURCH!" Tim screamed. 

"I CAN TELL YOU WHATEVER THE HECK I WANT!" screamed "Bree" back. "EXCUSE ME IF I WANT A HEALTHY, CURSE-FREE ENVIRONMENT!"

"Guys," Felix groaned, "this environment isn't healthy with all your sexual tension." 

"As the owner of Dupain-Cheng Fashion and Bakery," Marinette said, "I can say that this environment isn't healthy at all, sexual tension or not." She glared pointedly at Brianna, Tim, and Felix. The first two shrank back. Felix, however, didn't get the hint. 

"Good god, Mari. It isn't like all the stress of the fashion isn't making it worse."

"At least I don't steal all the coffee even though I 'have some at home but like ours better'."

Felix winced, but took the hit. He, of course, could not let the thing go. "Oh, Miss Stay-Up-Too-Late-And-Forget-Important-Business-Letter-For-A-Client, you're s-o-o-o-o-o-o-o much better."

"Forget our apparent 'sexual tension'," Tim whispered, "These two have got it worse."

"I'm inclined to agree." Bree said. "These two bicker so much I consider just smashing their faces together and making them kiss."

"Whelp, that settles it. Let's do it. Tonight, at eight, we convince them both to go on a 'company dinner' with both of us, then smash their faces awkwardly together."

"OK."

A woman slipped into their group. "Are you two plotting?"

"M-a-a-a-a-a-bye. God, Betty, the frick you think we're doing here? Felix and Marinette have got it s-o-o-o-o-o-o bad for each other." Tim winked a brown eye.

The woman in question, Betty, frowned and flipped her dark hair over her shoulder. "I don't think it will work."

Bree smiled like a conspiracy had just been proved. "Oh, yes it will."

XXXXX Three Weeks Later XXXXX

After the disasterous events three weeks prior (Tim had made her bonk foreheads with Felix), she had refused to go anywhere or to any "company dinners" with Tim, Brianna, or Betty.

She sighed, and ran her hand over the blue-covered manscript that had gotten her such success and employees in the first place. 

Tikki popped out of her jacket, as well as Plagg. The kwamis looked at her. "You need to start living your life, Marinette." Plagg stated. Marinette groaned. They had gone over this five thousand times. 

"I am, Plagg. I have been living for thirty-five years now, if you haven't noticed. Just because it seems I'm a little distant doesn't mean I'm not living my life."

"Yes it does, and you know sure as hell. You've skirted around friendships, you barely talk other than to argue or make suggestions. The company dinner three weeks ago was your only outing in at least a decade. You throw yourself into your work so much that stress lines are practically tattooed on your face! You think you are, but you are not doing shit in your life."

"Plagg!" Tikki said. "As offensively put as that was, he's right. You're so stressed, Marinette."

"No, I'm not. You remember the book I half-wrote? Adrien's journal, in which I added my points of view as an akuma? That was my big debut. Everyone had questions about the akuma Nightmare, how she felt, what an outsider might have felt, what Chat Noir, the resident superhero, had felt. I killed nearly everyone I knew. I moved to the States, and I published the book." Marinette ran a hand through her hair.

"Yeah, yeah, we know." Plagg said. "Instant success, you started your fashion business, reopened the bakery, now you're here. We heard it all. For God's sake, Marinette, we are five-fucking-thousand years old. There's been akumas like you. Chosens who nearly killed themselves. You are not different. So stop acting like a goddamn angst ridden teenager and get over it! It has been twenty years since your akumatizing. You need to let it go. You published the book when you were nineteen."

"SO FREAKING WHAT?" she screamed. "I KILLED OVER A THOUSAND PEOPLE! YOU THINK IT'S FREAKING EASY TO FORGET? TO FORGIVE MYSELF FOR WHAT I HAVE DONE? I DID THE WORST AS AN AKUMA. I KILLED MY BEST FRIENDS. I KILLED MY PARTNER, THE LOVE OF MY LIFE. I KILLED MY PARENTS. I KILLED EVERYONE I CARED ABOUT!"

"Just because you killed things doesn't mean a damn thing. You were under the control of an akuma. Would you blame Alya if she killed people as Lady Wifi?"

"No- don't you dare."

"Dare what? To use her name?"

"No. Don't use her against me!"

"Oh, you're so ashamed of your former best friend that you can't even hear her name. You know what? I'm going to say their names. Tom-"

"Stop it!"

"SABINE, ALYA-"

"STOP IT!"

"NINO. GUESS WHAT, CUPCAKE? LIFE AIN'T FAIR! SO SUCK IT UP AND DEAL WITH IT!"

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND-"

"NO. You don't understand. I've lost so many Chosens. You think that being immortal and watching Chat Noir after Chat Noir die, some peacefully, some at the hands of violence is easy? It isn't. I know you're all angst-ridden, thinking the world isn't the best out there, and that you have to live through the physical agony of this, but try doing it for milennia. There was one Chat who lost his Lady in a snowstorm. He found her body in a creek, bloated and blue. And you know what? He moped around like a sorry ass for years, thinking it was all his fault, even though it wasn't. So suck it up. You know, there's that song, where they say 'Carry on my wayward son' yadda yadda yadda, 'don't you cry no more'. Maybe you should take a lesson from it."

Plagg flew away, and Tikki did as well. 

Marinette slid to the floor, boneless. A book thumped down at her feet. 

It had been twenty years for her to heal. Twenty years for her to figure out what had happened. 

The blue cover of the book had shining gold print. She looked at it, and the title made her want to sob. 

"The Unmaking of a Hero" it read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hawk Moth's name sucks. It's like, do I have space or no space? Anyway, since this is my last chapter, I wanna say "Congrats!" to those who read it. *internally screaming because OH MY GOD, people left kudos and I could not believe it!* To leave it on a happy note, enjoy this joke I made:  
> Q: What did Zeus say to Hera?  
> A: "I apollo-gise."  
> Happy reading!  
> Love from,  
> Puns  
> PS- Should I write a sequel? I honestly have no clue. Please tell me, OK?


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